Living Without Meat

In all that you choose to do (or not do) in life, it always helps to have a support community of like-minded people. I’ve been enjoying searching for new vegan blogs to read in my quest for such. One of my new favorites is Vegan Soapbox, and, thanks to the writers over there, I have a new list of ones to check out: VegNews magazine’s VegBloggy award winners.

* Abolitionist Approach
* An Animal Friendly Life
* BitterSweet
* The Conscious Kitchen
* FatFree Vegan Kitchen
* Hezbollah Tofu
* Let’s Get Sconed!
* Post Punk Kitchen
* Ramblings of a Vegan Man
* SuperVegan
* The Urban Housewife
* Veg Blog
* Vegan Dad
* VeganEtsy
* Vegan Talk
* Vegan Yum Yum
* Vegans of Color
* Vive le Vegan
* Walking the Vegan Line
* We Like it Raw
* What the Hell Does a Vegan Eat Anyway?

Check them out, let me know if you find any particularly interesting or fun … but do come back, ya hear?

Pick up the next issue of VegNews - the music issue - to read their review of each site.

Recently I came across an archived article, titled “Should You Become a Vegetarian? Think Before You Eat,” from Ebony magazine’s July 2003 issue. It’s a good read, and good press coverage of a vegetarian diet, but I’ve devised a quicker way to decide if you should become vegetarian or not.

Answer each question with a yes or no:

1. Do you want to be healthy?

2. Do you like living animals?

3. Do you respect your body?

4. Do you believe that you are what you eat?

5. Do you feel that no creature should live a life of torture, confinement, abuse, and general mistreatment?

6. Do you like to eat delicious, nutritious, colorful food without feeling guilty?

7. Do you want to feel physically, mentally, and emotionally better?

8. Do you hate touching and preparing raw meat?

9. Do you want to be trendy and jump on the green-friendly or educated-consumer bandwagon?

10. Do you want to be in the company of celebrities like Paul McCartney, Carrie Underwood, Kristen Bell, Emily Deschanel, and Tobey Maguire?

If you answered yes to at least one of these questions, then you should become a vegetarian! (And if you answered yes to all of them … what are you waiting for?!)

Looking for some more recipe and meal ideas? Over at Allie’s (Green) Answers you can find a regularly scheduled, weekly meal inspiration through Allie’s Meat-Free Mondays. Full-time vegetarian or not, Allie doesn’t consider a meat-free meal to be two side dishes: a veggie and a starch. She dives head first into trying tofu, quinoa, and fresh organic seasonal crops.

Maybe it’s because I see the potential for a great conversation starter. Or maybe I can blame it on my parents again (I mean, I did play with models of wombs - removable babies included - at the various stages of gestation as a child). But for some reason I can see past the morbid reality of Etsy artist Jellibat’s crocheted vivisection victim bunny rabbit and find it utterly, darkly, funny.

Unfortunately, the only posted “Test Bunny” is already sold. I have hopes for more to appear soon; however, until then browse her shop! She has plenty of monkey love, licking dogs, dust bunnies, two-faced lions, cats, bats, and “jelli things” dressed up like Marie Antoinette, burlesque dancers, and robots.

***In all seriousness though, this is only comical to me as a light-hearted step aside from the truth and harsh reality of the pain that these animals endure “in the name of science.” If you are not aware that vivisection - animal testing - occurs every day, every where, and effects every one, please educate yourself (it’s okay to click: this site is NOT gory! Hooray for being able to find the facts without seeing visual gore!).***

Today’s the day that middle school students actually enjoy going to math class (though my sister and I always loved it!). It’s Pi Day!

In mathematics, the Greek letter pi = 3.14…..and then like one trillion more numerals. Today = March (3) 14. Hence, today is Pi Day!

But why do middle school students like it? Well, my friends who missed out, cool math teachers order pizza pies or bring in dessert pies to celebrate!

So have it; bring a little math into your life! If you make and bake it all from scratch then you are using math, too!

Just remember, make it vegan!

Vegan pizza recipes:

* Watch a YouTube chef put together a pizza pie from complete scratch, crust and all!

* By a crust (check the ingredients), slap on some sauce, sprinkle with casein-free soy cheese, and add all of your favorite toppings.

* Order up a tomato pie for delivery.

* Check out Recipezaar - there are 51 recipes that have both “vegan” and “pizza” as keywords.

Vegan Pie Recipes:

* The Almost Vegan drooled over a pie crust and filling recipe back in 2006.

* Whoa, forget the pies … VeganYumYum’s dessert section is way better. Just call it a pie, or bake it in a pie-shaped tin or something.

P.S. While I’m talking about pies … I highly recommend the movie Waitress with Keri Russell.

In addition to making myself into a healthier version of the same great me, I have also been working hard to follow another new trend for this new year: I have been turning my laptop off every night.

That’s right, this earth-loving modern-day hippie used to leave her laptop on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week!

I’ve been inspired to take on this - and a few other little green habits here and there - by a new favorite Web site: Green Is Sexy.

Take a gander around the pages of the eco-conscious peek inside the mind of three girlfriends - shown here, from left: Rachel, Didi, Megan. You may just recognize one of these lovely ladies of an unplugging mindset!

I get excited when I see an animal-rights or vegetarian article in a public newspaper or magazine, such as the Wall Street Journal did last week with its headline: The 247 lb. Vegan.

The press is catching on, and the animals are being given a voice!

So imagine my excitement over the past week when all of these articles fell into my e-mail inbox:

* From a delicacy, a delicate situation: Foie gras on Baltimore menus spurs protests made the front page of the Baltimore Sun, Monday, January 28.

* Rethinking the Meat-Guzzler was in the week in review, in the world section, of the January 27 Sunday New York Times.

* Last Sunday, January 20, one of my hometown papers - the Philadelphia Inquirer - featured Learning to eat, and like, his veggies by a regular columnist. A recipe is included for Walnut-Mushroom Pate.

* CNN reported that Chips could put lab rats out of work with an Associate Press-written science article this Monday, January 28.

* Lansing State Journal answered a reader’s concern with Weigh benefits of vegan diet for kids, also on this Monday.

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Annually, PETA staff members get together and dole out Proggy Awards. What “Proggy” means … well, I can only guess that it has something to do with frogs. But the awards themselves, which are in their 5th year, are less of a mystery. They recognize top companies, organizations, people, Web sites, products, books, and much more in the vegetarian world. Many of these are not necessarily vegan in and of themselves, but are being recognized for their vegan-friendly nature.

Topics vary slightly from year to year. Those just released for 2007 include Most Vegan-Friendly Coffee Chain (Peet’s), Best Cruelty-Free Household Product Line (Mrs. Meyer’s), Most Progressive Chef (Wolfgang Puck, shown), Most Improved National Food Chain (Burger King), and even a top prog Company of the Year (Garden Protein).

Check out all of the winners, a review of each, and links to the winners’ Web sites through PETA.

This was not my Project Blog entry, but I am still in the competition! Click Here to vote and check out all the contest-ual goodness!

If you: are a parent, think cute kids are cute, want proof that kids can be healthy vegans, or are just bored and want a fun link to check out … go visit the Vegan Children article at Vegan Health, a project of Vegan Outreach. These kids are too cute! There are photographs of kids of all ages - that are vegan - along with their story.
(And yes, they do have names like Journey and Saige, and haircuts from the ’70s.) What are you waiting for? Go!

I love calling myself a veg head, but I thought maybe it was just me. I’m often the oddball: turning left when others go right; spinning in circles when others walk a straight line; dancing when the only music is in my head. I am the girl who wore hot pink when everyone else chose black.

Apparently, however, on this particular matter I am not alone. ChrissyJo - whose name you might recognize if you read the comments - recently started up a fun, super cool, new vegetarian blog called Nutrition for VegHeads.

She’s included some great links - including one to little ol’ moi; a food of the week - currently the cherry; great quotes; and a look into life as a veg*n.

I’ve been meaning to point out her site for a little while now, but finally got to it today because of a great post that she wrote on October 30 titled “If Oprah approves, it must be good!”

Here’s a little teaser:

Quinoa (pronounced keen-wah) is a great food for new veg*ns to try. If you haven’t frequented natural food stores, you may not have come across it before. It is gluten-free if you have allergies. It contains lysine, making it a complete protein - good news for us VegHeads! It made Oprah’s Top 10 Superfoods list, too!

…keep reading…

Go ahead, don’t feel like you are cheating on me. I give you my permission to go read another veg head’s thoughts.

I found something cool today. Allrecipes has an article about making the perfect cookies where basic ingredients such as baking soda and powder, flour, fats, sugar, liquids, and binders are explained. It tells you what each item does for the cookies, why you want to include it or not, and what ratios provide flat, crispy, fluffy, chewy, etc. cookies. It also talks about how to mix everything together and at what temperatures to bake them.

This should make it a lot easier to substitute items and make your own vegan recipes!

In celebration of the pumpkin day that is upon us, I’ve dug around the great wide Internet to find the best vegan recipes for your jack-o-lantern leftovers. So after you pick out your perfect pumpkin to carve, sit down with a hot cup of pumpkin java and browse these tempting, guilt-free, seasonal recipes.

* At a blog that truly is as yummy as it sounds - Vegan Cupcakes are Taking Over the World - find the perfect blend of chocolate-y sweetness and pumpkin bliss in the Pumpkin Pie Brownie recipe.

* Jolinda Hackett, vegetarian writer for About.com, encourages you to enter the kitchen and look Beyond Pumpkin Pie. Three of her more unique recipes are her pumpkin martini, pumpkin risotto, and pumpkin coconut soup.

* Allrecipes has a great holiday drink idea - Vegan Pumpkin Nog! Who wants to drink an egg anyways?

* Compassion Over Killing has a fun Pumpkin Stew that you can serve in the pumpkin!

* Amy, who writes PETA’s VegCooking blog, whipped up a Pumpkin Bread recipe (read carefully, and you’ll see she also links to a few more pumpkin recipes!).

* If sweets aren’t really your thing, try Taste’s Pumpkin, Chickpea, and Zucchini Burger. To make this recipe vegan, sub-in egg replacement and soy yogurt, or anything else that would work to bind the ingredients together. If you’re not concerned about neatness, leave it out all together.

* Pumpkin spice coffee. I am addicted. Here’s how to get it vegan at your fave places: Starbucks: For a hot drink, order a soy pumpkin spice latte no whip. For cold, frappacinos cannot be made vegan so you should order an iced soy pumpkin spice latte no whip. Dunkin’ Donuts: They don’t carry soy milk, unfortunately (at least around me none do). Ask for plain pumpkin coffee, no cream, no latte, no milk products. If your local workers are like mine, you will have to repeat this, and then still return it when they put milk in it. Brew your own: Many companies are making pumpkin blends that you can brew at home. Try Millstone, Gevalia, Baronet, Bean Central, Green Mountain, and Buck Co. Some of these also have small, local stores.

And, of course, roast those seeds!

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The man that I like to refer to as Daddy-o (sometimes people call him Ellis), who has previously shared his hit corn and bean salad recipe, made the most fantastic vegan stuffing for me last year. This man loves to be in kitchen, hosting and serving on special occasions. He had a southern mama, so he enjoys making people happy through food.

However, he is also a busy man, hence I have yet to receive a copy of this fantastic, amazing, first-class, top-rate recipe … hint, hint, wink, wink, love ya, Dad! (Plus, I am assuming, since he also cooks like mom and me, that there really is no recipe, just whatever he can remember tossing into it).

So while we wait, Vegetarian Times magazine has just so happened to post a stuffing recipe recently. The magazine includes the stuffing as part of a pattypan squash (see what they look like here in the picture) recipe, but it would be excellent on it’s own, aside other seasonal side dishes as well.

You’ll have to visit Veg Times get the full Pattypan Squash with “Sausage” and Apple Stuffing recipe, but here is a teaser, with just the stuffing’s directions:

Vegetarian Times’ “Sausage” and Apple Stuffing

Mix 2 1/2 cups dried bread cubes; 3 frozen vegetarian “sausage” links, thawed and chopped (about 1 cup); 1 medium Granny Smith apple, peeled and finely chopped (about 1 cup); 1/4 cup chopped pecans; 2 Tbs. chopped parsley; 1/2 tsp. dried sage; onion powder; 1/4 tsp. ground allspice; and salt and pepper to taste in a bowl. Add 4 Tbs. vegetable broth or water to moisten.

Then just bake it however you desire to eat it. Stuff something, pack something, or just fill a pan to make a side dish (brush the top with oil, and bake at 375* until tops are browned and middle is warm and juicy!).

You could also try mushrooms instead of the fake sausage. Then put in mushroom broth as the moistener. Now that sounds almost as good as something that Dad would whip up for me!

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Recently I discovered a hilarious blogger who also happens to be a PETA employee. Jack, the British-imported writer of The PETA Files, throws a comical, witty twist on topics such as vivisection (animal testing), global warming, and the fur trade, without losing the brutal nature or truth of the matter. He does not downplay the seriousness of the issues that he tackles; he just manages to allow you enjoy becoming informed consumers, rather than including cringe-inducing content that stays with you - in a negative way - for a long time.

Even with the comedy, however, Jack’s files are not really for the just-dipping-a-toe-in vegetarians or what’s-this-all-about animal rights people. Don’t let this stop from you checking out what he has to say, just know that it is as I say.

It is also extremely entertaining. It gets the point across without showing you blood and brains. Though he does occasionally show you an actual picture of one of the men who performs the animal “experiments,” as he did recently in Vivisector of the Week - Attack from Mars!

What brought me to the point of simply having to share this with you, was his post on September 28: Wanna Fix Global Warming? Talk to the Giant Chicken in the Hummer. Ignore my previous statements, they don’t apply to this article; it is exactly what it sounds like.

And yes, he does have a cat that he calls Princess Cuteyface who has her own MySpace page, but no this is not her. Surprisingly, this is the first free picture that came up when I searched for “princess.” Hmm… I think people have too much free time on their hands.

Shortly after putting together my dietary iron research for you last week, I noticed a link on my personalized Google home page (iGoogle … I’ve fallen in love with it and highly recommend that you check it out!) talking about vegetarian iron sources, specifically the common leafy green spinach.

The exact iron-related question that was brought up in knitting class, that I didn’t mention previously, was: “I eat spinach practically every day, so how can I possibly be anemic?”

Now, I know that a basic answer would be: you always, for any diet, need to vary what you eat in order to intake and absorb an ideal amount of nutrients and vitamins. And being the non-scientific person that I am, this was about all that I could offer on the spot.

However, the Vegetarian LifeTips link that I saw on on my iGoogle was titled Iron in Spinach.

*Click!* You’ve got my attention.

Here’s what the editors at LifeTips had to say:

Iron in Spinach
Don´t rely strictly on spinach to get your iron. Your body can´t absorb enough iron from spinach to justify its reputation as a major source of that mineral. The best way to get iron from vegetables is to make a meatless stew such as chili with beans. The vitamin C in the tomatoes and bell peppers helps release iron from the beans.

Great info, LifeTips! Thanks!

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